Waltz: Nord Stream 2 Pipeline Allows Putin to Get More Aggressive with Ukraine

On Friday’s broadcast of the Fox News Channel’s “Special Report,” Rep. Michael Waltz (R-FL) tied Russia’s increased aggression towards Ukraine to the Nord Stream 2 pipeline and argued that  Vladimir Putin “knows when he controls Europe’s gas” through the pipeline, “he can fracture Europe and sideline them in terms of sanctions or any type of military response” to any Russian aggression to Ukraine.

Waltz said, “They have over 100,000 soldiers massed on Ukraine’s border. Bret, I think, at this point, it’s not a matter of if, but just when and how far does Putin go? And it is no coincidence that he’s doing it after Nord Stream 2 comes online. Because he knows when he controls Europe’s gas, he can fracture Europe and sideline them in terms of sanctions or any type of military response. And again, we need that clarity that the United States will support the Ukrainians, could send Stingers and air defense, which the Ukrainians have been asking for, and other type[s] of lethal assets. But instead, we’ve seen kind of some diplo-speak.”

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